Jason Kirkwood Blows Through Windy City Field

By Tom Martin, InsidePOOL Staff

Number-one pick Jason Kirkwood went undefeated to take the Windy City 9-Ball title at Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles, IL. His opponent in the finals was Donnie Branson, who mounted an amazing come from behind win over Jeff Sergent to earn his chance at the title and avenge his earlier 7-4 loss to Kirkwood o­n the winners’ side. It was not to be, however, as Kirkwood played an almost flawless final, holding all of his serves in the alternate-break format and mercilessly taking advantage of break troubles by Branson, eventually cruising to a lopsided 7-1 victory.

Results:

1st Jason Kirkwood

2nd Don Branson

3rd Jeff Sergent

4th Aaron Goodwin

5th Chad Lund, Tom Sommers

Friday night action also saw the Women’s 9-Ball event draw to a close, and it was Rebecca Wagner who emerged from the o­ne-loss side of the bracket to defeat Angela Mears in two sets. Wagner took the first set easily in a 5-1 rout, but Mears was determined to make the most of the second set. Never more than a single game separated the two throughout the match, but Wagner made the most of the sometimes erratic play by scoring some fantastic safeties. It was Mears who reached the hill first, but a missed 4 ball gave Wagner life, and another great safety allowed her to knot the score at 4. Wagner came up dry o­n the last break, but Mears hooked herself o­n the 3 ball and was forced to kick, leaving Wagner jacked up over the 7 and facing a very difficult out. Wagner took a few moments to compose herself and then proceed to navigate a very tough table to take the win and the $300 first-place prize.

Results:

1st Rebecca Wagner

2nd Angela Mears

3rd Tina Larsen

4th Maria Juana

Armato Takes Gold Medal from Sterling

In the BCA Pool League Open 8-Ball event, Mark Armato defeated Mike Sterling in two sets to take the $480 top spot. Sterling, who arrived in the finals undefeated, never seemed to be able to catch a gear and often found himself with o­ne ball remaining, which is death in 8-ball, as Armato simply played safe until he had the opportunity to run the table, which he did with aplomb, taking the first set 5-0 and o­nly allowing Sterling two games in the deciding set. o­n the women’s side, it was local Susan Rose who took the title in the 28-person field.

The 8-ball events began late Friday and are currently underway. The event, sponsored by AmberBock beer and Redbull, is scheduled to run through Sunday.

Visit InsidePOOL for the latest news o­n the Windy City Open.